Session VIIIReal date: July 7/07Game date: Day of Humility, 7th day of rule, , 127th year of factol Haskor’s reign.

The next morning Ludvik arrived last after scarring a cutter out of the forge. I saw the cutter first and gave him the apple I got from Ludvik back in the Hive. For a piece of fruit bought locally, it was well traveled.

Once assembled, I went to visit Javius Noll. He wanted me (well, my Da actually) to check out Captain Nabod’s rooms on the second floor. The fated are coming by to get whatever they can out of the room to pay some back taxes. According to Wingar, Javius is a good potter and a better neighbor.

Javius’ shop is just next door to Wingar’s. My meeting with him was brief. It took some time to arrange a fair price.

Ekikos spoke briefly to Arellius; he didn’t know much about the Captain. He seemed to have money (he rents an entire loft and furnished it himself). The neighbors complained of loud drumming at night and he was visited by people who spoke a babble of planar languages; seeing as he himself was a prime this wasn’t seen as unusual.

Crysaeis and Ludvik made their way down Alehouse row, trying to find people who knew the Captain. They found two people at the Black Sails who remember the Captain, but they’ve not seen him in 7-8 months. The Black Sails is a place of … character. The front of the place is pieced together from a ship. The bowsprit just out over the door and the black sails are tied to the bowsprit. The sails were once white, but seem to have been dyed black from the air in the Foundry district.

It’s an inn (rooms for rent on the second floor). The interior is lit by candlelight. There are curtained-off booths along the edges of the place and tables scattered about in the center. The customers are mostly foundry workers and mercy killers.

The innkeeper, a human named Zarin, knew of the Captain as he was a regular at the Inn. The patrons knew him as an acquaintances. A mercy killer (familiar to Ludvik as a visitor to Hinrik’s forge) points out the fish in the common’s room. Apparently it came from the Captain. The fish is named Esmeralda. The barmaid here is a friend of the Captain’s too. She takes care of the fish. It’s small, bright blue with orange fins – it’s also the most colorful thing in the commons room. Salja comes on duty around noon.

Ekikos and I entered Captain Nabod’s place. Javius had given us the keys. I searched it good and slow. Having Ekikos help to open doors and search the tall spots was very handy. The Captain had fine dark wood furniture with brass fittings; all of them are unique pieces. After a through search we found 4 copper rings and a map (beneath the ball atop the headboard’s left post). There are several artistic pieces/curiosities in the desk that could fetch a pretty penny and a lot of journals written in a language neither I nor Ekikos can recognize.

Eventually Ludvik and Crysaeis come to visit. Crysaeis detects magic and finds out that her bracers and helm are magical, as is Ludvik’s silver dagger. She says it has divinatory and conjuration magics.

Ludvik speaks to the housekeeper, a young tiefling with a pallid complexion and angular features. She has dark brown cropped hair. She’s dressed a little provocatively. She and Ludvik do not get along. He does learn that she was paid handsomely to take care of his place. Her name is Salja. Ludvik learns from Javius that the Captain did indeed have a housekeeper, she lives up the street.

I speak briefly to Javius about what we’ve found. He’s less than enthused, but realistic. I agree to stay up there until the Fated arrives.

Ekikos brings me my bed! And a packed lunch from Marm; I settle down on the desk to flip through the various books. I can’t read any of them, but some of the pages have pictures.

Crysaeis went off the visit the Prioress Sophia and asks about the new-found magic in Crysaeis’ bracers and helmet. The Prioress says a hefayestin from the Arborium wants to meet Crysaeis. His name is Ardalus. He is a proxy of Hephaestus. According to the Prioress the hem is changing magic but empty somehow. The bracers are similar and look bright orange, almost white.

Later that afternoon Ludvik, Crysaeis returned to the Black Sail with Ekikos. They learn that Salja got the fish out of the Captain’s bathtub. One man in the bar believes the fish is actually the Captain seeing as how the fish and the Captain haven’t been seen together it’s as likely as any other story going around.

At the Black Sails, the party finds someone who new a fair bit of the Captain’s dark chants. Ekikos buys a few drinks to loosen lips and hears a few details about the Captain. Captain Nabod has the reputation of being able to drink anyone under the table. Salja found him “rather grabby”. He was wild-eyed and claimed to be a pirate captain. His ship was the Grindstaff, although he may have several ships. He raided the seas of some elven nation.

Back in the apartment, I am still reading. A breeze ruffles the book’s pages. The windows are closed and there’s not been a draft in here before. I scurry under a nearby chair at the thump near the tub. When I turn back the book is closed; then the needle on the stone starts to spin madly. When I glance up, the book is back in its proper place. I call out, but there’s no response. I check the room out (running from behind one thing to under another), but there’s no one here.

Eventually I return to reading, but my fur is starting to stand on end. Again I hear a noise and again I investigate. And again the book is back in its normal place when I turn back to the desk. Not really knowing what else to do I talk to the ghost. What it does then is amazing.

First I hear splashing. Then I see wet footprints heading from the bath to the bed. Then the footprints begin to slide all over the floor – as though someone were being pushed about. Then there’s a loud thump by the bed (right about where we found a small spot of blood), then drag marks back to the tub and more splashing.

Suddenly in the apartment there’s a strange blue glow coming from the doors of the Armoire. A pale faced human, looking a bit like the man in the painting on the wall (who we think is the Captain) steps through the open doors of the Armoire from a pale blue background. He’s stepping out of a portal.

From my vantage point under the bed I can see him pull out a scroll. I demand to know who he is and what he’s doing here. He gives me some scree about being important and death incarnate (or some such) then demands I show myself. Not likely!

He moves across the apartment trying to get some light. He eventually reads a scroll near the window and turns around. I guess he thought he’d see something. But he didn’t. I call out to him as he reads, but it doesn’t stop him. When the blue light returns to the Armoire, I get scared. I couldn’t let him leave! I throw a skip rock at him and it shatters against his shoulder. He cries out, pulls out a towel and plunges it into the Armoire. A few seconds after he steps through the Armoire, the light goes out.

I decide the best place for me is bed. I’m not feeling too good.

I’m still huddled in there when there’s a nock on the door. I call out and it’s Ekikos, Crysaeis and Ludvik returning. They’re pretty surprised at my tale.

Ekikos goes over and starts muddling about with things on the desk. He blows on the conch shell and the lip of the closed chest glows. It’s another portal. Ludvik opens it up and climbs down the netting. He’s hanging from the net about 5’ of f the ground on a beach at sunset overlooking the ocean with a tropical forest stretching out behind him. The coastline curves much like it does in the map. The portal is formed between the criss-crossing of palm trees. He comes back up and we each take a turn. By the time Crysaeis gets down there it’s almost dark. Ekikos grabs some sand and a crab grabs him!

When Crysaeis comes up, we hear drumming; much like the noise that the neighbors use to complain about to Captain Nabod.

Ludvik turns his attention to the Armoire. I ask the ghost to help us find the portal’s key and the doors of the Armoire bang. When Ludvik opens them a towel is out of place. It takes a few tries, but he gets the other portal to open using the towel. Beyond is a second door that slams shut a few instants after our portal opens. There’s not enough space between the portal and this door to see anything. It feels like a door without latch or hinges (they must be outside the confines of the portal). The smell from beyond is horrible – smelling like the Cage’s backed up sewers.

Crysaeis goes to speak to Linni and fetch her spear. I go wake Javius and tell him about the portals and their keys. We want to explore one (if not both) to determine their worth. We might start with the chest if we can’t get the door beyond the Armoire open. Everyone goes to kit up while I return to the apartment.